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Rob Stockwell '07 led the Bobcats with 16 points, while also grabbing nine rebounds. Elliott Linsley '05 continued his hot play of late, closing out his collegiate career with a team high 13 rebounds, including six on the offensive boards and nine points.
Amherst led by as much as 11 points with just over seven minutes to play when Bates mounted a comeback behind Zak Ray '07. Ray's scrappy play and big-game performances have been big for Bates all season and he did not disappoint in the final. Ray scored eight points and grabbed two steals in the midst of a Bobcat comeback which found the team down just two points, 59-57, with less than three minutes to play.
The run ended there for the Bobcats, who due, to a combination of fouls and missed field goalsâ€"they would not score for the remainder of the gameâ€"sealed their fate.
As in most big games, defense was the key for the victorious Lord Jeffs, who as NESCAC champions received a bid into the NCAA tournament, the only NESCAC team to compete.
"I think we need to credit Amherst's defense for making us work for everything," said Coach Joe Reilly. "We also played well on the defensive end, holding them to their second lowest point total of the year. But we didn't execute as well as we could have on the offensive end."
To get to the championship game, Bates knocked off conference rivals Williams and Tufts in earlier rounds.
The Bobcats hosted the first round matchup against the Ephs, who dropped to No. 6 in NESCAC after being a perennial powerhouse for the last decade.
Williams came out firing, taking the lead with twelve minutes to go in the first half and holding onto it for the majority of the game, save a three minute span that traversed halftime. Their lead was as much as eleven when the Bobcats began their comeback with just under nine minutes remaining.
Jon Furbush '05 hit a three to start the rally, and as the crowd became more engaged in the game, Bates' intensity increased. Their defense limited the Ephs to just two points in the final minute, contesting shots and making four steals.
Stockwell carried the team, scoring eleven of the Bobcats' thirteen points in the remaining seven minutes, including the tying bucket with 1:45 to play. Both defenses held strong, sending the game to overtime.
Bates and Williams juggled the lead back and forth, as Ray hit a three and Brian Gerrity '05 knocked down a jumper and added a layup to keep the Bobcats in the game. Williams standout Tucker Kain '05 missed a jumper with 34 seconds to play, which left the Bobcats with one possession.
Time was called, and during the brief respite Reilly called for a play Bates goes to in late situations, where Stockwell and Linsley provide a double screen for Ray. Stockwell would roll out for a jumper while Linsley would cut to the basket; Ray would be left to make the decision.
When the team took the court again, Ray called the play, and had to run it with five seconds left. To plan, Ray took his man through the screen and hit the rolling Stockwell, who pulled up for a three-pointer with his man in his face. As the buzzer sounded, Stockwell's shot swished through the net, sending the Bobcat faithful onto the court to celebrate their advancement.
That win led directly to Amherst, where Bates took on Tufts Feb. 25. The Jumbos had defeated Bates three weeks before in Alumni Gym.
The drama of the previous two buzzer-beating victories would not be sustained against Tufts, as Bates led for the final fourteen minutes, though Tufts was able to make it a one-possession game with less than two minutes on the clock.
Ray led the team with 17 points and six assists, while Linsley and Furbush added 11 each.
Coach Reilly was most impressed with the Bobcat defense, which he called "our best defensive effort of the year."
"Gerrity did a great job jamming their point guard to stop the fast break," said Reilly. "Elliott and Matt Chudomel '06 worked together to slow down Reggie Stovell."
Stovell, one of NESCAC's premier frontcourt players, still managed to score 21 and pull down 13 rebounds, both game-highs, but shot just 8-19.
Former Bates student and current Jumbo reserve guard Jimmy Edgerton '06, unable to play due to a shoulder injury, noted the Bobcat defense on the outside as the reason for the defeat.
"Gerrity and Bush put a lot of pressure on our wings," said Edgerton. "But (Sean) Cahill '06 really won the game in my opinion. It was the best I've ever seen him play, he came in and shut us down."
Cahill's second half defense included two steals which led to easy baskets. The junior guard also pulled down three rebounds in twelve minutes of play.
The end of the season marks both the best one-year record Bates has had, 19-8, but also the best four-year win total for the graduating class.
As the team looks to next season, the class of '05 will surely be missed.
"It's unfair to say we have to replace our four great seniors, that is a lot of pressure on our younger players," said Reilly. "Next year's team will certainly have a completely different personality, and we have a lot of work ahead of us to match the results of this year."
In all, Bates will lose three startersâ€"Gerrity, Furbush and Linsleyâ€"and one of their first men of the bench in Victor Rivera.
Gerrity was perhaps the highest-profile of the four, as a former Division II recruit and one of the all-time high scorers in Maine high school basketball. He finished his collegiate career tenth in scoring for the Bobcats, with 1,203 points, just two shy of Herb Taylor '84 in ninth.
Furbush was a top rebounder, third on the team with 152 this season, while being a premier outside threat as well, leading the Bobcats with 56 three-pointers, hitting at a 37% clip.
Linsley's inside presence will be missed, both offensively and defensively perhaps the most consistent player on the team. Linsley led NESCAC in field goal shooting this season.
Rivera's athleticism often altered games, as his presence in the game in the place of either Furbush or Stockwell would require teams to adjust their defensive scheme.
Despite the great losses, the team is poised to repeat the success they found this year, behind arguably the team's top players, All-NESCAC Second-Teamers Ray and Stockwell.
"As always I will be doing my best to bring in a very strong recruiting class," said Reilly. ‑"I know we will once again have very strong upper class leadership. ‑As always, the foundation of our program will be a great work ethic in and out of season.
"The preparation to win games next winter starts right now."